Huatulco Travel Guide
Huatulco guide: nine bays, snorkelling, coffee plantation tours, eco-tourism, and Oaxaca's planned Pacific resort town done better than expected.
Guides for Huatulco
Huatulco (officially Bahías de Huatulco) was planned and developed by the Mexican government’s tourism development agency FONATUR in the 1980s as a resort destination — the same organisation that built Cancún. Unlike Cancún, development has been deliberately controlled: building heights are limited, large sections of coastline are national park, and the town (La Crucecita) has a genuine Mexican character that Cancún’s hotel zone lacks.
The nine bays
The coastline around Huatulco is divided into nine bays (bahías), most with calm, clear Pacific water. The main visited bays are:
- Tangolunda: the main hotel zone, good swimming beach
- Santa Cruz: main marina, ferry dock, restaurants
- Chahué: the most developed for tourism infrastructure
- La Entrega: popular for snorkelling — dense coral and fish
- San Agustín: calmer bay further west, less visited, very clear water
Boat tours visit multiple bays in a day; alternatively, taxis and water taxis serve the closer bays.
Snorkelling and diving
La Entrega and the nearby bays have good shallow snorkelling. The Parque Nacional de Huatulco protects the offshore reef; dive operators in Santa Cruz and Chahué run guided reef dives. Visibility is typically good October–May.
Coffee tours
The mountains behind Huatulco are coffee-growing country — the Sierra Norte of Oaxaca produces some of Mexico’s best arabica. Coffee plantation tours (2–4 hours) run from the town: visitors see the growing and processing stages and taste the product. Operators typically include transport from Huatulco.
La Crucecita
The planned town centre is a grid of streets around a central square — more functional than beautiful, but with good restaurants, a market, and the services travellers need. Most budget and mid-range accommodation is here; the beach resorts are in the bays.
Getting there
Bahías de Huatulco International Airport (HUX) has direct flights from Mexico City and seasonal connections from some US and Canadian cities. Buses from Oaxaca City take 7–8 hours. Puerto Escondido is 110 km northwest — shared taxis and buses connect the two towns.